Atlas of Battles

battle, major, medieval

Battle of the Zab

Battle of the Zab was a battle fought on 25 January AD 750 at Great Zab, in what is now Iraq. It was part of the Abbasid Revolution, which ran from AD 746 to AD 750. The recorded result: Abbasid victory. Recorded strength: 10,000–30,000 against 100,000–150,000.

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Battle of the Great Zāb River between the Umayyads and the Abbasids.
Battle of the Great Zāb River between the Umayyads and the Abbasids.. Unknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought25 January AD 750
WhereGreat Zab, Iraq35.991N, 43.344E
OutcomeAbbasid victory
BelligerentsAbbasid HashimiyyaagainstUmayyad Caliphate
Part ofAbbasid RevolutionAD 746 to AD 750

Where it sits in the Abbasid Revolution

Friday Battle, AD 748Battle of Jurjān, AD 748Siege of Wasit, AD 749Battle of the Zab, AD 750AD 748AD 750Battle of the Zab, AD 750
4 placed engagements of the Abbasid Revolution in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date25 January AD 750
PlaceGreat Zab, Iraq
35.991N, 43.344E
KindBattle, medieval
Strength10,000–30,000100,000–150,000
Commanders
  • Abd Allah ibn Ali
  • Abu Awn Abd al-Malik ibn Yazid
  • Musa ibn Ka'b al-Tamimi
  • Marwan II
Battle of the ZabBattle of the ZabBattle of KhazirBattle of GaugamelaSiege of MosulSiege of MosulBattle of NinevehBattle of KhazirBattle of GaugamelaSiege of MosulKirkukIrbilZakhoDuhok100 km35.991N, 43.344E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of the Zab
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 25 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of the Zab today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2023-10-13. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2023.

The recorded site stands at about 184 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 0 to 286 m, 286 m of relief, hilly country and today it is 42% cropland, 40% grassland, 9% bare ground.

cropland: 42%grassland: 40%bare ground: 9%water: 6%built-up: 3%cropland 42%grassland 40%bare ground 9%water 6%built-up 3%
west to east, 10.0 km184 to 270 mnorth to south, 10.0 km0 to 215 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Battle of the Zab is one of 144 engagements of the 8th century in the atlas and one of 173 in present-day Iraq.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q289492, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of the Zab, revision 1382223597, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.